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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26032711">Are You With Me On This?</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/carlidiasendgame/pseuds/carlidiasendgame'>carlidiasendgame</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Las Chicas del Cable | Cable Girls</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Altered Plot, F/M, Happy Ending</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-08-21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-09-05</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 07:46:20</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Not Rated</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,370</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26032711</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/carlidiasendgame/pseuds/carlidiasendgame</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Picking up where season 2 left off, this is a rewritten version of what happened in season 3 and in the last few seasons of the show. This is my attempt at bringing the relationship between Lidia Aguilar and Carlos Cifuentes justice. If you were left as disappointed as I was with the ending of the show, I hope this alternative ending will bring you some peace.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Lidia Aguilar/Carlos Cifuentes</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>14</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. The Hospital - part 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>This is the first fanfic I’ve ever written! I do not proclaim myself a talented writer, but with the terrible ending this couple was given, I felt the need to give them a happier ending. I’ve had a great time reimagining their story, and I hope it will serve as a better ending to the one we received, despite my lacking skills in creating writing lol. Enjoy!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">The first thing I sensed as I regained my consciousness, was the familiar scent of Carlos. At that moment, I had no clear picture of where I was, or why I was there.</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1"> Then the pain hit me, like a blow to the head. It spread through my whole body, and with it came the flashbacks of what I’d just gone through. The fear I’d felt, for my life and my baby’s.</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <em>
    <span class="s2">The baby.</span>
  </em>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">The last thing I’d seen before passing out was my own blood. Yet, what concerned me the most was the survival of my child. I wanted to ask if it was okay, if it was still alive, but I felt as if I couldn’t properly control my motions. It was a bit like being in a dream where you try to run, but you’re just stuck in space, unable to move. I could only make out a groan of pain, and it was enough to alert Carlos of my consciousness. </span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Lidia.” the concern in his voice was noticible, even in my poor state. It sounded as if he’d been crying. “You’re in another hospital, a safe one. You’re safe, cariño. I won’t let my mother near you ever again.”</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">His voice was warm and comforting, despite the obvious sadness to it. I felt his hand gently run over my hair as he kissed my forehead. </span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">I tried to open my eyes, but the light seemed so bright it felt as if I was looking directly into the sun. </span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Suddenly seeming to have gained control of my hands, i brought one up to my head as the next wave of pain hit me. It made me groan in agony once again.</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">I could recognize the genuine worry in Carlos’ voice as he repeatedly reassured me, “you’re okay, you’re okay.”</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">I finally found myself being able to speak again, and managed to make out: “is the baby alive?”</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">He took my hand and clutched it. </span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Yes. You lost a lot of blood, but the doctors managed to stop it, and find a heartbeat. It’s alive.”</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">I let out a sigh of relief, finally feeling like i could breathe again.</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“The doctors said you got lucky, although you broke some bones and got a serious concussion. What matters is that you’re going to be alright.” </span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">He kept stroking my hair, while still holding on to my hand. </span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">I had no clue of what the future would hold for me, but in that moment, I knew I’d be fine as long as Carlos stayed by my side. As i slipped back into a deep sleep, his comforting presence made me feel safer than I had felt in ages.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. The Hospital - part 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I’m back at school, so if I rarely update, that’s why :( However, I’ve written quite a few more chapters already, along with a detailed timeline of what I have in mind, so I expect I should be able to post several of them within the remainder of this week and the next! I would appreciate any feedback to let me know what I can do better, or what you would like to see in future chapters :)</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>I was woken by sunshine shooting through the hospital windows. My eyes took a while adjusting to the brightness, and once again i felt the pain kicking in, although not as pungent as the day before. I tilted my head to the right. In the arm chair next to my hospital bed, was a sleeping Carlos, resting his head on his shoulder. It made me smile. In the aftermath of chaos, it felt good to see someone so peaceful-looking.</p><p>Not wanting to disturb him in his sleep, I spent some minutes quietly admiring his tranquility. It surprised me how at ease i felt just by being in his presence, despite how troubled our relationship had been for the past months. Having him by my side in that hospital, somehow helped make up for the months we’d spent as rivals.</p><p>Some minutes must have passed before someone entered the room. A person i most certainly wasn’t expecting. “Francisco?” He’d given me the impression that he intended to leave Madrid, so seeing him was somewhat of a pleasant surprise, although our relationship was complicated.</p><p>“Lidia.” He gave me a sympathetic smile, leading me to believe I must’ve looked as groggy as I felt. “I’m glad to see you awake.”</p><p>Having taken notice of a sleeping Carlos, he kept his voice low.</p><p>“I thought you left?” I puzzled.</p><p>“I was going to, but then I heard about what happened, and I couldn’t.”</p><p>My heart sunk. Although my feelings for this man were steadily fading away, I still cared about him deeply. Part of me was glad he’d stayed, but another part told me he could save himself some more heartbreak if he left. I wondered if he would even be willing to be in my life as just a friend. Deep inside, i definitely hoped so.</p><p>“How are you feeling?” he asked.</p><p>I shrugged. “Better than yesterday, but not very good.”</p><p>“I’m sorry.” He said genuinely.</p><p>“Do the girls know I’m here?”</p><p>I could only imagine what they’d think if I disappeared without a trace.</p><p>Francisco nodded, to my relief. “Carlota and Marga came by while you were asleep.”</p><p>“And Ángeles?”</p><p>He sighed, fixating his eyes on the floor. “She’s been accused of murdering her husband, but she fled before the police could catch her.”</p><p>As if my physical pain wasn’t already throbbing, I felt as if another wave of terror washed upon me.</p><p>
  <em>Is she okay? Is she safe? Is Sofía with her?</em>
</p><p>A million worries raced through my head, and it was only then that i realized how trapped I felt in the hospital. Confined to my bed, all I wanted to do was to make sure my friend was okay.</p><p>“Can you try to contact Marga and Carlota? I need to speak to them.”</p><p>“Lidia, maybe you should get some rest before-“ Francisco started.</p><p>“No,” I replied firmly. “I need to see my friends.”</p><p>He shrugged, and retrieved back to the waiting room.</p><p>The sound of the door closing finally woke Carlos up. He gathered himself together quickly, rubbing his eyes and sitting up in the chair, before shifting himself towards my bed.</p><p>“Lidia!” He exclaimed enthusiastically upon seeing me awake. “Are you alright?”</p><p>
  <em>Physically, I felt better. But with the news about Ángeles...</em>
</p><p>I hesitated for some seconds before nodding.</p><p>“Francisco just came to see me, and he told me about Ángeles.”</p><p>He shrugged. “I’m sorry, Lidia, but I’m sure you had no way of knowing she was capable of that.”</p><p>For a moment I was taken aback, before remembering Carlos had no idea of what had happened. My instincts told me it was safe to tell him the truth, especially when it involved me, and so I did.</p><p>The whole thing shocked him; from the atrocities of Mario, and to the fact I’d been involved in hiding a body.</p><p>“I’m sorry you had to go through that alone.” he profusely apologized.</p><p>“Well, at least I had the girls.”</p><p>“I know, but if only I had been there for you earlier, I could’ve helped. At the very least by faking a witness testimony!” He insisted.</p><p>I knew, of course, that he was right. However, I was also aware that holding that against him wouldn’t help the situation.</p><p>“Carlos, it’s done now. I just want to find out how I can help Àngeles.”</p><p>“You shouldn’t worry about anyone but yourself.”</p><p>“I just need to know she’s safe, that’s all.” I insisted.</p><p>Carlos sighed. “If it’ll put your mind at ease, then I’ll do everything i can.”</p><p>Later that same day, the girls finally came by again. It felt good seeing them, and they seemed relieved to see me recovering. Something appeared to be bothering Carlota, but she didn’t want to talk about it, other than that it was “something about Miguel”.</p><p>None of them had heard from Ángeles, which furthered my worries, but at least the police hadn’t seen her either.</p><p>“What matters is that she managed to get away, and that you’re no longer a possible suspect.” said Carlota.</p><p>“I just hope she’ll let us know wether she’s safe.” I shrugged.</p><p>“She probably will once she’s settled somewhere, right?” prompted Marga hopefully.</p><p>Carlota reassured her it was likely.</p><p>Before leaving, they both promised to tell me once they heard from Ángeles. Being unable to help them look for her, I could only hope it would be soon.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. The Hospital - part 3</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I know I said I wanted to publish this earlier, but school has been beating me up this week :/ Nonetheless, I hope you guys enjoy this chapter! I promise it’s the last one in the hospital!!!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Some more long days went by in the hospital, and I still couldn’t get used to the sterile smelling scent of the place. Laying in bed all day, still in pain somewhat, was fully taking its toll on me. </span>
  <span class="s1">I’d managed to get into a wheelchair once or twice, but it was painful work with broken ribs and bruising everywhere.</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">The only thing that gave me a sense of comfort, was having Carlos by my side at nearly all times. Nonetheless, it felt isolating to never leave the hospital room, and to not see my friends as often as I would have liked to. Ángeles weighed heavily on my mind, and I felt as though the girls were the only ones who could truly understand. Having to wait between every visit from Marga and Carlota to hear about any potential news of her, had brought nothing but disappointment so far. As of that point, no one had heard a thing from her since she fled Madrid. It was as if she escaped into thin air.</span>
</p><p class="p1"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">There had been a few days where I’d managed to convince Carlos to go to his apartment and get some proper rest, just for some hours during the day. Although I wouldn’t admit it, I hated being left on my own in that place, but I also knew that sleeping in hospital chairs wasn’t doing him good. One of those days, I was close to dozing off, alone in my room, when someone entered through door. Assuming it was just Carlos or some nurse, I was too sleepy to bother checking who it was. </span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Then I heard my guest’s voice, and immediately felt as though my heart froze. </span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">None of my nightmares could have prepared me to face this woman again; Carmen Cifuentes. But there she was, standing no farther than a few meters from my bed.</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“A bit of a coincidence for us to meet in a hospital again, wouldn’t you say?” She snickered. </span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">I could feel panic building up in my chest, most noticeably by the thudding beat of my heart. I had wished to never have to see this woman again, least of all while recovering from the harm her actions had caused me. </span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“What are you doing here?” I managed to ask, using all my energy not to appear as scared as I was.</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I’ve come to warn you,” she said, her voice turning stern. “You may not have gotten away easily from tricking me, but you should be grateful you got away at all. </span>
  <span class="s1">I want you to stay away from Carlos. If you think I’ll let you keep my son away from me, and profit off of his fortunes, then you are mistaken.”</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“My help isn’t needed to keep Carlos away from you. If you think he will forgive you for the things you’ve done, then you don’t know him half as well as you think.” My act to appear bold was slightly butchered by the crack in my voice, but I managed to keep it together.</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I know my son better than anyone, and most of all how much he loves me. Sooner or later he’ll see what kind of person you are, and come back apologizing. With no child in his future, I’m sure that’ll be sooner than you think.”</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“No child? What do you mean <em>no child</em>? The baby is alive, despite your efforts to rob us of it.”</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Immediately after blurting that revelation out, I regretted it. If she tried to get rid of the baby once, who was to say she wouldn’t do it again? </span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Carmen’s face turned pale.</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I don’t know what kind of family you picture having with my son, but I can assure you, it won’t be a happy one.”</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">She shot me a last threatening glare as she finally retrieved out of my room, before I could bother talking back to her.</span>
</p><p class="p1"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Her words got the best of me once I was all alone again, and I couldn’t hold the tears back. As much as I despised Carmen with every inch of my being, I couldn’t help but worry if she was right. In that moment, it seemed like the world was against us. I already knew Carlos’ and my relationship had to be worked on after our rocky history, but Carmen’s threat made the road seem so much longer.</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Was I naive to think it could ever work out? That she would leave us alone once and for all?</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">It felt like ages passed before Carlos finally arrived, although I can’t imagine it must’ve been more than an hour. As soon as I saw him, I couldn’t help but break down. Every worry and fear had built up during my stay in the hospital, and Carmen’s appearance was the final straw. </span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Lidia!” His voice and expression were full of worry as he rushed over to my bed. “Are you okay? Did something happen?”</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">He laid his arms around me, gently pulling my head to his chest.</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Your mother. She came to see me.”</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">I felt his body freeze up as he sat up straight and looked me in the eyes, his expression a mix of worry and compassion.</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Lidia, I’m so so sorry.” He said, cupping my face with his hands. “You shouldn’t have had to deal with her alone. I promise you I won’t let it happen ever again.”</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">He kissed my forehead and pulled my head gently to his chest again, embracing his arms around me carefully.</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Carlos, she won’t leave us alone. She threatened to hurt me again if I don’t leave you.” </span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I won’t let her near you.” He assured me with absolute conviction in his voice. </span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“But how? She won’t stop until she has you back. I don’t feel safe here anymore.” I insisted.</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Whatever it takes, my love. I won’t leave your side another time, do you hear me? If you don’t feel safe here, then we could go away. We’ll do whatever it takes.” </span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">I tilted my head to look into his eyes.</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I love you.” I told him, with full sincerity.</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I love you, too.”</span>
</p>
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